1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of tools and more particularly to a magnetic tacking hammer handle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the course of construction work for example in nailing sheetrock in place, it is sometimes necessary to tack a nail in place before driving it permanently into the work surface. This is particularly important when nailing into elevated surfaces and places where it is difficult to reach to hold the nail in place with one hand while pounding it in with a hammer held in the other hand.
A number of tools in the prior art have utilized magnetic means to hold the nail in position until it can be tacked into place. In many of these tacking tools, the magnetic means is included in the head of the hammer. To tack the nail in place the hammers shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,597,876 and 2,671,483, for example, would be swung with the same motion as that used to drive the nail in permanently. Some of these hammers have magnets to hold the nail in place along the longitudinal axis of the hammer handle (e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 710,615) and require a thrusting motion to tack the nail. U.S. Pat. No. 1,664,594 has a pivoting member to hold the nail physically in place until the hammer head, used in a sideways manner, can start the nail.
However, a magnet which is located in the hammer head can eventually become demagnetized by the regular use of the hammer in striking nails. Moreover, it is not easy to be accurate in tacking a nail when holding the hammer by its handle and extending the heavier head end to the end of one's reach.
Although some hammers or other tools have used magnets in the handle end, the magnets have been used to attract nails from aprons or pick up other metal objects, as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,228,720 and 1,441,903. When used for this purpose, the magnet protrudes from the bottom of the handle along the longitudinal axis of the handle. Neither of these latter prior art devices would be useful for tacking purposes, however, since the magnetic protrusions would make it difficult to line up the nail accurately and the thrusting longitudinal motion necessary to tack the nail in would be less precise than the normal motion of swinging a hammer.
Thus, there has been a need in the construction field for a hammer or other tool having a permanent magnet located in the tool so that it is not readily demagnetized and so that the hammer can be used to precisely anchor a nail for tacking purposes without awkward movements by the user. In addition, there has been a need for a hammer handle which allows the hammer to be utilized for both standard pounding and tacking functions and which could be easily manufactured from standard parts. The present invention provides a hammer handle which is a solution to the problems and disadvantages of these prior art devices.